Technical Abstract:
Regulatory restraints on the use of soil fumigants have increased the need for sustainable nematode management approaches. Nematode resistant vegetable varieties with desirable horticultural characteristics are limited. Technology enabling the grafting of desirable scion varieties onto resistant rootstocks for vegetable transplant production is rapidly advancing. Greenhouse, microplot, and field trials were conducted on tomato, pepper, and cantaloupe to assess rootstocks for resistance to Meloidogyne incognita. In greenhouse trials on bell pepper, ‘Aristotle’ scion grafted to rootstocks ‘Charleston Hot’, ‘Carolina Wonder’, ‘Charleston Belle’, ‘Mississippi Nemaheart’ and ‘Carolina Cayenne’ were resistant to M. incognita, while ‘Aristotle’ ungrafted, ‘Aristotle’ self grafted, ‘PA-136’, and ‘Caribbean Red Habanero’ were susceptible. In microplot trials on tomato, M. incognita populations in roots were higher in ungrafted ‘Florida 47’ than in ‘Aloha’ and ‘TX301’ rootstocks. ‘Multifort’ rootstock was intermediate. Ungrafted ‘Florida 47’ had more galling than all rootstocks. In microplot trials on melon, Cucumis metulifer rootstock had less galling than ungrafted ‘Athena’ and ‘Tetsukabuto’ rootstock. In field trials on double-cropped tomato/melon combined with several soil fumigants, ungrafted tomato had higher M. incognita populations in soil and roots at harvest than all other rootstocks. Interactions occurred between soil treatments and rootstocks with regard to galling. Greatest galling occurred in non-fumigated soil and in ungrafted plants, while ‘Multifort’ and ‘Aloha’ were resistant to M. incognita. In the double-crop melon, C. metulifer supported lower M. incognita populations in soil and roots at harvest than the ungrafted ‘Athena’ or ‘Tetsukabuto’. Greatest galling on melon occurred following ungrafted tomato in all soil treatments. Use of grafting has significant potential for nematode management in sustainable, high-value crop production systems.